"Do you think I don't know how valuable this money is? Do you think I don't know how difficult it is in Japan right now? What do you know? Hirobumi Ito said in a deep voice, word by word.

Shigeru Moriyama was so frightened that he hurriedly bowed his head, "I'm sorry, sir, I lost my words, it is already very good to be able to get the support of the Germans' diplomatic statements, which is equivalent to isolating China, and no country in Europe will dare to support China again." ”

"Hmph, you know, it's good, although the bribes we paid are enough to buy two ironclad ships, but we in Japan, now we need peace and stability the most, and with the scientific and technological support of the great powers, we have begun to take off in the economic and industrial map, now even if we get a fleet, we can't beat China, the competition between countries still depends on science and technology! When the strength is not enough, patience is even more needed, why don't you understand such a simple truth? After Ito finished speaking, he stopped paying attention to Shigeru Moriyama and walked faster and faster.

Shigeru Moriyama hurriedly followed.

Two days later, while the Emperor was still waiting to see King Alfonso XII of Spain in the Kingdom of Spain, a German diplomatic statement was issued, albeit in a simple sentence, in support of the British restriction and the hope that China would withdraw from the Japanese island of Kyushu as soon as possible.

But this sentence is tantamount to sealing all the diplomatic paths of Emperor Hua's trip to Europe together!

There is no national support is not terrible, the most terrible thing is to be blocked by all the powers, there is no friend, this is the most terrible, no friends can be found slowly, now this diplomatic statement of Germany is equivalent to issuing a ban order to China together with Britain and France, and which European country dares to get involved with China?

"Your Majesty." Princess Katrina Kafu saw that Emperor Hua had sat quietly for a long time without speaking, and she had the courage to call softly.

President Meng came back to his senses and raised his hand, "It's okay, this situation, I expected it a long time ago, Ito Hirobumi is indeed very powerful, it seems that Germany was originally biased towards supporting Japan." ”

"The Germans are really stupid, don't they know that although China's war against Japan is far away from Europe, China's Central Asian province is on the edge of the European continent, so close to Germany, and the power of Tsarist Russia and Britain is separated from it, if China cannot stand in Central Asia, will it threaten Germany's security? Do they want Tsarist Russia and Britain to grow? Princess Katrina Kafu aired.

"Germany can never stand with Tsarist Russia, and I think Bismarck must have been forced to accept the Kaiser's orders, and it doesn't matter." President Meng smiled.

Princess Katrina Kafu looked at President Meng curiously, as if there was nothing in this world that could make Emperor Hua feel nervous.

President Meng is really completely relaxed, if before Germany did not issue this statement, the emperor still had unrealistic illusions about Germany, now it is completely gone, a country's face, still have to rely on their own to fight.

"Why can't Tsarist Russia and Germany stand together?" Princess Katrina Kafu asked.

"What is the relationship between populism and pan-Slavism that emerged in Russia in the 19th century? Like the origins of the Slavic nations, Pan-Slavism developed and mutated differently among the three Slavic branches of the East, West and South. Tsarist Russia was not the source of Pan-Slavism, which was arguably the latest to develop in Imperial Russia. After Waterloo, Imperial Russia reached its peak of international prestige and self-confidence, and culturally, considered itself to have inherited the high civilization of Byzantium; Religiously, he despises the ruined Catholic Church; Militarily, God's Elector saved Europe from Napoleon. The Holy King's initiation of the Holy Alliance is a manifestation of this. Under the Vienna system, the core ideological orthodoxy of Imperial Russia, as the gendarme of Europe, was responsible for maintaining the divine legitimacy and perpetuity of the European monarchs. Pan-Slavism, on the other hand, is in contradiction with Orthodoxy. Because Pan-Slavism meant the dismemberment of Austria. Although there were pan-Slavist voices in Imperial Russia, they could not form a mainstream. But it was enough to cause fear in Austria. The turning point of Pan-Slavism in Russia was the crushing defeat in the Crimean War, when Britain and France taught Russia a naked view of nation-state interests, and Austria backstabbed the Russians to realize that they needed external allies, at a time when Imperial Russia faced international isolation. President Meng replied.

"Well, so Tsarist Russia could only look to the Slavic brothers of Austria and the Ottoman lands. The crushing defeat in Crimea raised questions about the legitimacy of the tsar, which was manifested internally as populism and externally began to revise its foreign policy. What both have in common is the theory of Russian particularity, in which the Russian nation has a special moral responsibility and should be given the task of leading other Slavic peoples. The suppression of the Bulgarian uprising by the Ottomans did arouse sympathy and indignation among all strata of Russia and led to the outbreak of the Russo-Turkish War. Austrian-Slavism emanates from the Czechs and Croatians, and is an illusory dream of the Czechs and Croats, who are too weak to unite the other Slavs. The Czechs wanted to fight for power with the Habsburgs, but they did not want Austria to be weakened too much out of fear of Russia. Princess Katrina Kafu continued the words of the Emperor.

This strange trend of thought can be roughly summed up as "supporting Austria and resisting Russia." Of course, in mid-1848 this handful of Czech gangsters were ruthlessly exterminated. Croatia knew a lot, although the 1848 revolution also rose up, but the Hungarians wanted to take over, and the Croatians felt that it was better to mingle with their old bosses, and instead supported the emperor to suppress the Hungarian revolution. Pan-Slavism was not the protagonist in the Russian-Austrian contradictions, and unlike the Ottomans against the Bulgarians, Austria-Hungary was still very good with the Croatian younger brother. The Habsburgs assisted the Croats in reaching a Hungarian compromise within Hungary and relied on the Croatian governor to rule Bosnia, the Grand Duke Franz also wanted to establish the United States of Austria, and the Rasra Ladies suppressed the Magyars. However, the irreconcilable contradiction between Russia and Austria lies in the fact that since Austria was driven out of Italy, the only direction of expansion was the Balkans, and the Balkans were also crucial for Russia, especially after the defeat of the arrogant game and the Russo-Japanese War. In the clash of great powers, Pan-Slavism is really just a façade. If the Balkans were all Greeks, the Russians would have come to protect the faithful. Pan-Slavism is a classic example of populism. President Meng said, "Our biggest reliance is on this messy relationship in Europe. ”

Princess Katrina Kaaf smiled: "Yes, I also thought it was very chaotic before, such a small place, but so many countries, so many nationalities, so many factions, now that I think about it, it is indeed a good thing, it shows that no matter which two countries, it is difficult to really come together." ”

President Meng nodded and said: "That's right, as early as the Greek War of Independence in the early 19th century, this kind of populism in Tsarist Russia has appeared. The governments of all the great European powers, except France, did not want Greece at first, but the people demanded support for Greece. Britain and France were mainly manifested in Christian salvation and humanitarianism, and France also sent a large number of volunteers, similar to the international columns of the Spanish Civil War. Tsarist Russia is Orthodox Orthodoxy and Pan-Slavic. This contradiction between the government and the people has had a profound impact on the international situation. The Ottomans were too cruel to Greek repression, coupled with Greek lobbying against Tsarist Russia. Eventually, the three powers compromised with each other and intervened in Greece. After the defeat in the Crimea, the pan-Slavia intensified. The crisis in the East broke out precisely because of the pan-Slavia. Without the support of Tsarist Russia, even if Bulgaria, Montenegro and so on dared to make a revolution, with the help of Britain, the Ottomans would have been able to deal with it. Tsarist Russia repeatedly intervened in the Balkans under the slogan of Pan-Slavism. ”

The origin of Pan-Slavism among the people is the idea of unity, revolution, freedom, which should be praised.

However, the later Tsarist Russia went, the less opposed it was to unite all the Slavic peoples under the leadership of the tsar, which was already naked great-power chauvinism.

Germany tried to dominate the world. Germany, both in terms of diplomacy and preparations for war, has seriously violated the principle of balance of powers.

Sandwiched between a bunch of predators, China does have a lot of opportunities in the middle of Europe and Asia.